Abduction
by Maddybug
Summary: After the events of season 2, the gang struggle to pick up the pieces. But when someone unexpected visits with a keen interest in Liz, it turns the pod squad's world upside down again. M/L M/M
1. Blackout

**Disclaimer: I own nothing**

**AN: Hey there! This is a story I had in my head for years but couldn't seem to get it organized until now. I'm still new to and this is only the second story I have ever put up so I'm a bit nervous. I hope you all enjoy it! Please review! I would love some feedback and I am always looking for ways to improve my writing. Thanks guys!

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The tiny drops of water that hit his face felt like pinpricks against his weathered skin. It was the first thing he registered as he felt his mind begin to emerge from what felt like a deep sleep. But he knew better.

The muffled sound of cars passing by came next, accompanied by scattered voices. One by one, a new sense was returned to him, reminding him he was alive.

The hardest part, as always, was forcing his heavy eyelids to open and allow him to take in his surroundings.

How long had he been out this time?

He took in his new environment, observing how different it was from where he had found himself the last time this happened.

The last thing he remembered was waking up, his back against a parked car, the smell of asphalt clearing the heavy fog from his mind.

While still trying to get ahold of his surroundings, a blurry pair of shoes appeared in front of him. He blinked, clearing his vision and looked up to see a kid, no older than 15 or 16 years old, standing in front of him looking surprised and slightly worried.

"Hey man... are you okay?"

His throat felt like sandpaper as he tried to croak out a response. "Where...where am I?" he managed to say.

The gangly teen in front of him nervously rubbed his arm, a pair of keys dangling from his hand.

" You don't know where you are?"

As he struggled to stand he shot the nervous kid an annoyed look. " Would I be asking otherwise?"

"Well, if you mean _specifically, _then you're in the parking lot of my apartment complex. But geographically? You're in Jacksonville." the teen waited for a reaction as he watched the stranger absorb the new information.

Finally he looked up, eyes squinting against the sun. "Florida?" That explained the humidity that caused his long unkempt hair to stick to the back of his neck.

The boy adjusted the backpack he had on his shoulder and nodded. " Look...I-I'm really sorry you're lost or whatever...but I'm gonna be late for school and you're kind of leaning against my car..."

It was then that he once again noticed the keys dangling from the boys hand. As casually as he could he looked over the car,an old toyota, it's paint chipping and rusted. Gesturing to the beat up old vehicle, he asked "....your car huh?"

Looking the kid up and down, he decided he could take him easily, even in his disoriented state. If he could just get the keys, he could be in the car and on the road in no time.

The young boy nervously drummed his fingers against his pant leg. Yeah, he could without a doubt take this kid, but it wouldn't be even close to a fair fight and the poor guy just wanted to get to school. He'd figure out some other way out of here.

"Thanks kid." He said as he pushed himself off the car and walked past the boy.

He found his way onto a main road where a lone gas station stood on the other side. There was bound to be some chips or something in there he could pocket. He was always starving when he woke up. But before he could take another step off the sidewalk, a familiar stabbing pain entered his head.

Not again. It was too soon! He usually had a couple days before the next episode would hit him.

And then darkness.

It was all he could ever remember from his missing days. He pushed the memory aside, bringing himself back to the present. He used the wet wall behind him to push himself up. He didn't know how much time he had. He had to find out where he was.

Stumbling out of an alley he found himself on a side walk, not bothering to shield himself from the rain. He must have looked awful because the passing crowds eyed him nervously as they passed him by. Desperately, he grabbed the arm of the nearest person, a young girl who squealed in surprise.

"What city is this?" he asked staring at her wildly.

She struggled in his grasp. " Let me go! Don't touch me!"

Grabbing her other arm to steady her, he repeated his question, he could black out at any moment, and he needed to find out where he was. " Look, I'll let you go just tell me where we are!"

She continued to struggle but answered 'Seattle! We're in Seattle-ok?" He relaxed his grip on her arms allowing her to wriggle away and run from him. Seattle?

How in the hell had he gotten to other other side of the country?

He needed a game plan. He wiped the rain that was falling down his face away and started to run towards the nearest bus stop. He knew he didn't have much time before it happened again and the only people who might be able to help him we're miles away.


	2. Followed

**Disclaimer: I own nothing**

**AN: Here's chapter 2! I hope I did a good job keeping everyone in character. Don't forget to review!**

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"He's been following me you know"

Was she supposed to be afraid? Is that what he wanted? She didn't feel afraid. Although she had known he was watching her for days, _afraid _was not how it made her feel. She felt vulnerable, maybe a bit nervous at best. But not afraid. Liz silently wondered if that was just further proof of how desensitized she had become.

Running a hand through her hair, she walked down the streets of Roswell, arm linked with her best friend.

Maria purposefully brought her foot down on what looked like an extra crisp leaf and frowned when her boot connected with the sidewalk without so much as a crunch.

" Who is, Max?"

Liz was silent for a moment, lost in her own thoughts. With a small shake of her head she answered. "Not exactly."

It had been nearly 2 weeks since he had come strolling into their lives, turning everything they thought they knew inside out, and effectively ending the calm that had settled in the aftermath of Tess's betrayal.

A familiar tightening in her chest told Liz not to think of that just yet. There would be time later.

None of them were surprised really. It was only a matter of time before something else came around to disrupt their attempts to regain what they could of their lives. To try and find some leftover semblance of normal...or at least, as close to normal as they could hope for.

Maria snorted. "Don't tell me the black sheep of the Deluca family hasn't taken the hint..."

Liz gazed down the street as the lights of the Crashdown Cafe came into view. She hadn't seen Sean since the day Tess left. Her cheeks burned slightly in embarrassment, recalling how foolish and impulsive she had acted, practically throwing herself at him, only to hit the brakes moments later and use him as her personal pillow to sob into over another guy. God, when had she become this pathetic? She knew he deserved an explanation, but if she was completely honest with herself, she was glad that her efforts to avoid him were working.

"No...no um- I actually haven't seen much of him lately...you know, after the whole..."

Liz didn't need to finish the sentence. Maria was already giving her a knowing look, accompanied by a sympathetic smile. They

stopped as they reached the front doors of the Crashdown, and Maria gently grabbed her friend by the shoulders, turning Liz to face her.

" Liz. Girlfriend. You have _nothing_ to be embarrassed about. You were heartbroken. You needed comfort and you went looking for it...granted in my opinion you went to the _completely _wrong place...but I digress. Don't go beating yourself up over dumping him. Plus, the kid was in Juvey. It's like, a sign of weakness to show emotions in there. Hopefully he learned _something_ in the slammer and will just let it go."

Liz rolled her eyes. "No--Maria I didn't _dump _Sean. We were never officially together. I mean, can you really dump someone you never dated? "

"Liz. Stop deflecting. That's not what Im getting at. I'm just saying...if he doesn't bring it up? Just let it go. We have enough on our plate without you wracking yourself with guilt over a guy who can barely remember to keep his fly zipped up."

She couldn't help but smile at Maria's attempt to make her feel better. Leave it to Maria to jump at the chance to insult Sean, cousin or not.

But as Liz reached for the door to enter her family's diner, her smile began to fall as she felt a familiar chill run down her spine. She knew immediately it wasn't the cold night air.

He was watching her. Her hand froze on the handle of the door and she whipped her head around, searching the empty street for any sign of him.

Nothing. Not a person in sight. And most definitely not him. When he watched her, he did it in plain sight, without shame. His burning eyes would bore into hers, not seeming to care at all that she knew he was watching her. At work, at school... at home.

It almost looked like he took pleasure in the fact that she knew, that she was uncomfortable...that he effected her.

He must have gotten better at hiding because tonight, he stayed out of her vision.

Maria stared at Liz, puzzled. "Liz, what are you doing? What are you looking for?"

Liz's nervous eyes met her own as she pulled a confused Maria closer, lowering her voice to a whisper.

"Its like I said before. He's following me...I think he's been watching me."

Maria's expression suddenly became very serious." What? wait Liz, _who _exactly is following you?"

One look from Liz was all it took for Maria's own eyes to widen in realization.

"Oh my god. Oh my god!" Liz, already anticipating this kind of reaction from her best friend, quickly shoved her through the doors of the empty cafe.

"No-no,no,no Maria? Don't flip. Look at me. Calm down."

" Calm down? Oh my god Liz-is he like, _out there,_right now waiting for you? How long has that-that _freakshow_ been stalking you?"

Liz pleaded with her friend. " Maria, _please_ my parents are upstairs!"

Maria brought her voice to a whisper " Liz. I'm dead serious about this. You have to tell Max."

"Maria, no. It's not that big-"

"Liz if you don't I swear to god I will. Now promise me. Promise me you'll tell him at school tomorrow first thing." The look in Maria's eyes told Liz she was serious.

"Okay...I'll talk to him. But for the record--you're overreacting."

Maria snorted. "Honey, I think this time I have every right to. And just so you know, Im sleeping over tonight. Some bodies gotta be here to protect you from Mr. peeping tom."


	3. Missing

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot**

**AN: Hey guys! I cannot apologize enough for how long it has taken me to pick this back up. I'm so sorry for the wait but I'm going to have a lot more time on my hands to spend on writing so expect more frequent updates! I want to thank hideher and the kampfkind for the reviews and for hanging in there while I finally got the next chapter cranked out! Happy readings people! Please review! **

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Liz nervously tapped her fingers against her leg as she waited in the eraser room. Max would be there any minute and she silently berated herself for getting there so early. Timeliness was usually her thing, but now her little habit was working against her. She was left with all this time on her hands, to let the anticipation gnaw away at her. She paced the tiny room while she contemplated how to start the conversation. The temptation to just ignore Maria's warning and bolt out of there was extremely hard to resist. This would be the first one on one talk she had with Max since Tess left. In the month that followed the fourth alien's betrayal, the weight of their unfinished business seemed to create an awkward amount of pressure on them to reconcile and reconcile quickly.

And for a moment, standing there that day by the pod chamber, wrapped in his arms for the first time in what felt like an eternity, Liz almost gave in. She almost couldn't care less about everything that had happened between them, all the hurtful things they had done and said. She was overwhelmed by a feeling of relief when he pulled her to him, and looked at her with that familiar sincerity in his eyes as he told her that within the many mistakes he had made, she was the only thing he had been right about. She almost got lost in the way it felt as she leaned her cheek against his chest. His hands went to her hair, softly stroking her brown strands exactly like he used to, before Tess and Nesado arrived, before Future Max came to her, and before Alex...

The thought of Alex is what killed her euphoria. Alex was dead and things would never be the same, not between any of them. And as the six friends wearily made their way down the rock formation towards their car and the adrenaline that had supercharged her emotions began to leave her system, Liz started to gently and wordlessly de tangle herself from Max's possessive arm around her shoulder. She couldn't just fall back into the familiarity of being with Max. She needed time to figure out if she even _could. _He seemed to have noticed the shift in her mood and she kept her gaze averted as she felt him look down on her in concern and confusion.

"Liz?"

Ignoring him, she walked swiftly to the passenger side of Maria's car and opened the door, shooting an apologetic glance at Max before getting in and closing herself inside before the others had a chance to reach the old Jetta. The ride back to town was silent the whole way, everyone seeming to understand the collective need for silence. Liz couldn't help herself though, and would occasionally look up to check on the cramped passengers in the back. Isabel was sitting uncomfortably in Michael's lap, her head resting on his shoulder. She had fallen asleep fairly quickly and Liz couldn't help but be a little jealous of Isabel's small break from what was now their reality.

Next to Michael and Isabel sat Kyle, scrunched in the middle seat of the car. She found herself having a hard time keeping her eyes on him because the sight was heartbreaking. He sat hunched over his knees, his hands on the sides of his head. His bloodshot eyes were hauntingly sad and he was unapologetic with his obvious visible torment. Kyle had just found out he was responsible for carrying the dead body of one of his friends and Liz could see from the look on his face that it would haunt him for the rest of his life. He had cared about Tess. He trusted her, made her a part of his family. How could he have known what she was making him do? He was powerless against her mindwarp. Liz tore her eyes away from him, holding back tears of her own. He didn't deserve this on his conscience.

Last was Max, sitting quietly to the right of Kyle. Every once in a while she would catch him watching her through the rearview mirror, his expression unreadable. Sometimes it felt like he was looking right through her, lost in his own thoughts. She had never seen him look so utterly exhausted. No matter what he had gone through the past year, no matter how bad it got, you could always sense unwavering determination in Max. You could see it when you looked in his eyes, like it was rooted in his soul. But looking at him through that mirror he just looked...defeated.

Ever since that day they had both interacted with each other from a distance. Only directly addressing each other if they had to during the groups occasional "alien related" meetings. Liz didn't feel any hatred or anger coming from their distance, just resignation and exhaustion. Max was staying away because he thought it was what Liz wanted, and Liz just simply didn't know_ what_ she wanted. He had consumed his time with trying desperately to find a way to bring his son back to Earth, and although Liz could understand it, she hated it. Any mention of his missing child only reminded Liz of how broken her heart was over his indiscretion. Of how their love, which always had felt so pure, was now forever tainted in her mind. From time to time she felt guilty about the blame she placed on him for the state of their relationship. It had been a month since she had come clean about not sleeping with Kyle and she still hadn't told him _why _she had lied. She knew it was her own actions that had a hand in pushing them to the place they were in. Max didn't push the issue, but she knew it was something he deserved an answer to. And it was something she was determined to talk to him about. Eventually.

Liz leaned against the shelves behind her, checked her watch and let out a sigh. Maybe he wasn't coming.

And she honestly couldn't tell if she was more relieved or hurt.

When she heard the door handle rattle her heart raced. The part of her that was glad Max had chose to come was battling the part of her that was terrified to be alone with him in such an enclosed space. Especially a space that held so many heated moments for them.

But when it was Maria who poked her head in the door, Liz let out the breath she didn't realize she had been holding.

" Maria?"

" My god Liz you are _so predictable. _You couldn't just pull him aside at lunch or something?" She said as she slipped into the tiny room.

Liz rolled her eyes. "Hey, _you're _the one who insisted I tell him. What are you doing here anyway? Max is supposed to meet me any minute now."

" Not today hun, we've got a Czechoslovakian crisis on our hands." And with that Maria grabbed her friend by the arm and led her out of the eraser room without another word.

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"Mr. Evans? _Mr. Evans!" _

Max reluctantly tore his eyes from the sheet of paper in front of him, quickly covering it with his textbook.

"Max I'm aware all of us tend to zone out from time to time but I that does not make you exempt from following along with my lesson plan. Now open your book to the correct page and stay focused or you'll be spending this afternoon in detention."

Max tried to keep his expression as humble as possible. After the things he had endured over the past year it was ludicrous that something like detention could even phase him.

"Sorry Ms. Meyers. It wont happen again." He said as he flipped his textbook open.

Her eyes softened a bit before nodding. "See that it doesn't."

Max could almost feel her concern for him radiating off of her in waves.

He had always been a dutiful and focused student and his sudden neglect of his schoolwork in the final 2 months of his junior year had all his teachers, not to mention his parents, concerned and puzzled.

But he doubted anyone in galaxy could focus completely on school when they had lost their unborn son.

Suddenly applying for college, and getting straight A's seemed even more unimportant than it had already become to him. He had way too much on his plate.

Max glanced over at his teacher, making sure her attention was elsewhere before peeking under his textbook and the piece of paper with Liz's handwriting scrawled over it.

_Meet me in the eraser room after 3rd period. We need to talk._

It was the first time Liz had approached him to talk in a month. He lightly ran his fingers over the words and silently wondered what she wanted to talk about. There were so many things left hanging between them, Max wondered which one she was choosing to tackle today.

With all the things that had been left unsaid between the two, the thought of finally confronting it all was exhausting to him.

Initially his feelings for Liz were what he had hoped he could draw from to give him strength. But the moment he felt her pull away from him as they walked from the pod chamber is the moment he knew it wasn't going to happen that easily and his guilt set in. _Of course_ it wasn't that easy. Did he really expect her to be completely fine just because Tess was gone? To let him crawl back into her arms after all the hurt he caused her, all the mistakes he had made...after sleeping with someone else? And then there he was laying the in the bed he had made all on his own and he automatically had expected her to be his safety net again. So when she pulled away, he was resigned to let her. He had no right to expect anything more than her given empathy.

Ever since that day, Max had resolved to leave her alone. It had gotten to the point that any time he saw her he was over taken by guilt and as a result avoided thinking about her as much as he could, throwing himself headfirst into finding _any_ information he could on saving his son.

He tore his eyes away from the paper to look at the clock hanging over the chalkboard. Less than minute left until 3rd period was over. He swallowed nervously. Less than a minute left until he was alone with Liz for the first time in weeks. And in the Eraser room of all places.

When the bell rang signaling the end of the class period, Max quickly gathered his things and headed out the door with his classmates.

As he made his way down the hall toward the Eraser room, he tried to calm his nerves, which felt like the were about to jump out of his skin.

It was only Liz. He knew he would have to talk to her eventually but he still felt himself take a few deep breaths to calm down.

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt a strong hand firmly grip his arm.

" We've got a problem Maxwell."

Michael began to pull him off to the side and Max, sensing his friend's anxiousness, was immediately on alert.

"What is it? What happened?"

" He's gone." Michael said plainly, as if that was all there was too it.

"What? What do you mean he's gone? How? " Max whispered fiercely as he glanced at the students around them, making sure they hadn't overheard.

" I don't know," Michael said also casting a glance at the people around them. " but I came back to my place after running out to grab some food and he was just gone."

Max struggled to keep his temper in check as panic began to wash over him. He couldn't be gone. He was the best shot Max had at getting his son back!

" You went to grab some _food? _What part of 'never let him out of your sight' do you not understand Michael? Even for you this is by far the most irresponsible thing you have ever done."

Michael leaned in closer meeting Max's eyes in frustration. "What do you want from me? I'm not your freaking babysitter Maxwell! Besides the guy has no reason to leave he said so himself! How was I supposed to know he was going to bail?"

"Are you sure he's gone? You looked everywhere?"

Michael didn't even try to hide his annoyance. " No Max, my 1 bedroom apartment was too big for me to search on my own."

Max ignored his quip and began walking briskly towards the student parking lot. "It doesn't matter. The important thing is that we find him and find him fast."

" You read my mind." Michael said as he followed in step.

Max stopped before reaching the double doors. "Wait. I'm supposed to meet Liz..."

" Maria's already on it Maxwell, let's move it before everyone beats us to the apartment."


End file.
